I was reading some posts on this site and someone sailing a 16 wanted to switch over to a uni rig boat like a 17. Why would someone want to do this? Doesn't giving up the jib slow you down and make tacking more difficult? I'm new to this sport and would like to be enlightened.

The 17 was designed as a single person boat. I learned to sale on one back in 86-87. I know from having fun at the beach racing against a guy on a 16 that he would beat us on a jib/tack, but once we came out of the tack/jibe/turn that we woudl catch him pretty quick.

Bottom line, the 17 is a fast fun boat. but not the greatest for multiple people. It really shines with a crew weight of around 160-180 lbs.

Interesting. This just shows how much I don't know. I picked up a 14 this summer at a screaming great price and sailed it for most of the summer but was having trouble tacking so I picked up a jib kit for it thinking it would tack easier for a novice and maybe get me some more speed. So the jib is actually killing my speed sailing upwind? I hope I didn't just waste money on the jib when in reality it is just my lack of skill.

On a 14, you won't be able to point as high with the jib upwind, but you'll go a bit faster. You'd get to the weather mark about the same time as a 14 without a jib, but you will have traveled a longer distance to get there.

Off the wind, there's no substitute for raw sail area. You'd kill a standard 14 on a reach or downwind.

I'd think that adding a jib to a boat designed as a uni might have some lee-helm issues if not re-balanced. Wouldn't the mast rake need to be adjusted back to accommodate the fore/aft change in center of pressure?

On a boat without daggerboards (Hobie 14 / Hobie 16), the position of the center of lateral resistance (CLR) can be changed by the fore and aft position of your body weight.

The relative positions of the CLR and center of effort (CE) in the sails determines the feel on the helm (assuming the rudders are balanced to begin with). When the CLR is behind the CE, the boat has lee helm; when the CLR is ahead of the CE, the boat has weather helm.

Adding a jib moves the CE forward slightly, which can counterbalanced by moving your weight forward slightly on a boardless boat.

On a boat with daggerboards (especially an F18 with the super long, high aspect boards), the CLR is all but fixed. Changing the sail plan - or raking the mast differently - will have an immediate, noticeable effect on the helm.